Package for absorbent articles forming a three-dimensional basin

ABSTRACT

A package comprising a stack of absorbent articles which are bi- or tri-folded, and each article comprises a topsheet, a backsheet, and an absorbent core between the topsheet and the backsheet. The absorbent core comprises an absorbent layer comprising a central portion, a first side portion and a second side portion, a first folding guide between the central portion and the first side portion, and a second folding guide between the central portion and the second side portion. Each side portion comprises a plurality of winglets, each winglet having a proximal side relative to a folding guide and extending outward from this proximal side. Neighboring winglets are separated by a gap between their neighboring sides. When the absorbent core is folded along the folding guides, the central portion and the side portions form a three-dimensional basin and the gaps between the winglets decrease, the neighboring sides optionally coming into contact. The articles in the package are either bi-folded along a transversal fold line and are compressed at an In-Bag Compression Rate of from 5% to 50%, or the articles are tri-folded along a first fold line and a second fold line parallel to the transversal direction.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a package for personal hygiene absorbentarticles of the type worn in the crotch region of a wearer to absorbbody exudates, in particular but not limited to baby diapers and adultincontinence products.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Modern diapers typically comprise an absorbent core containing a mixtureof cellulose fibers and superabsorbent polymer (“SAP”) particles asabsorbent material. Over the years, the relative amount of SAP in theabsorbent core has increased thus providing thinner absorber cores, andabsorbent articles with an absorbent core material without cellulosefibers, so called airfelt-free cores, have also been recently proposed.Absorbent cores comprising a central portion and two side portionsseparated by folding guides have also been suggested for providing animproved fit and reduced leakage.

Typically, as absorbent articles become saturated with urine, they tendto sag down in the crotch region of the wearer due to the weight of thefluid. This may cause loss of contact of the article along the thighs ofthe wearer and increase the possibility of leakages. While elastic waistbands and other elasticized parts such as barrier leg cuffs are commonlyused to maintain contact and fit, these solutions are limited andleakage can still occur, especially if the diaper was not put in placecorrectly or was displaced out of position by the wearer.

The thinner the products get, the more the consumers expect that thedisposable absorbent article will be discreet, specifically conformingto the shape of the body. For the relatively thin airfelt-free articlesthis expectation is highest. Despite the improvements suggested in theprior art, there is a continuous need for improving dry and wet fit,wearing comfort, and fluid handling properties, including fluidacquisition and reducing leakage, of absorbent articles while keepingthe cost as low as possible. Furthermore, there is a need for articlesthat are easier to apply symmetrically on the wearer and conform to theshape of the body. The present invention is directed to an efficientpackage for specific absorbent articles that easily form athree-dimensional basin when put on the wearer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is directed to a package comprising at least one stack ofabsorbent articles as indicated in the claims. The absorbent articleeach comprises a central portion and side portions separated by foldingguides. Each side portion comprises a plurality of winglets separated bygaps. In a first aspect, the articles in the package are eitherbi-folded along a transversal fold line and are compressed at an In-BagCompression Rate of from 5% to 50%. In a second aspect, the articles aretri-folded along a first fold line and a second fold line parallel tothe transversal direction. In a third aspect, the package has anIn-Bag-Stack Height of from 72 mm to 120 mm. The In-Bag Compression Rateand the In-Bag Stack Height are measured according to the methodsindicated in the description.

When an article is needed, the package may be opened, an article takenout of the package and un-folded along the fold line(s). When theun-folded articles are placed on a wearer after being taking out of thepackage, the absorbent core folds along the folding guides of thearticles. The central portion and the side portions form athree-dimensional basin and the gaps between the winglets decreases, theneighboring sides of the gaps optionally coming into contact. Thepackage of the invention helps the absorbent articles to retain theirfunctionality following compression, storage and transport.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top view of an exemplary article, opened and flattened-out,and with some layers partially removed to better show the inner layers;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the same article in a basinconfiguration, with the layers above the absorbent layer removed fromview;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of several layers of the articleof FIG. 1;

FIG. 4a is a schematic cross-section of the article of FIG. 1 along 4-4;

FIG. 4b is a cross-section as in FIG. 4a of a simplified article withonly one of the two liquid management layers;

FIG. 4c is a cross-section as in FIG. 4a of another simplified articlewith the other one of the two liquid management layers present;

FIG. 5 is a top view of the absorbent core of the article of FIG. 1taken in isolation;

FIG. 6 shows a cross-section of the core of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 shows an exemplary glue application pattern on the inner side ofthe top layer of the absorbent core with the absorbent layer in dottedlines;

FIG. 8 is a top view of the lower liquid management layer of FIG. 4 a;

FIG. 9 is a top view of the upper liquid management layer of FIG. 4 a;

FIG. 10 is a top view of the absorbent core, and two liquid managementlayers of FIG. 1 shown in superposition;

FIG. 11 is a top view of an alternative absorbent core;

FIG. 12 is a top view of an alternative lower liquid management layer;

FIG. 13 is a top view of an alternative upper liquid management layer;

FIG. 14 is a top view of layers of FIGS. 11, 12, 13 shown insuperposition;

FIG. 15a is a perspective schematic view of diaper with its longitudinalside edges pre-folded;

FIG. 15b is a perspective schematic view of the diaper FIG. 15abi-folded;

FIG. 16 is perspective view of a package comprising a stack of bi-foldeddiapers;

FIG. 17a is a perspective schematic view of diaper with its longitudinalside edges pre-folded;

FIG. 17b is a perspective view of the diaper illustrated in FIG. 17awith one third of the diaper folded in;

FIG. 17c is a perspective view of the diaper illustrated in FIG. 17bwith the second third of the diaper folded in to form a tri-foldeddiaper;

FIG. 18 is perspective view of a package comprising a stack of bi-foldeddiapers;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of a universal diaper packaging tester.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Introduction

As used herein in the specification and the claims, the term “centralportion”, “side portion”, “folding guide” and “winglets” without furtherqualification refer to these elements as part of the absorbent core,unless specified otherwise or wherein it is apparent from the contextthat these terms refer to another layer. When these terms are furtherqualified by “liquid management layer”, as in “liquid management layer'scentral portion”, they refer to these elements as part of the liquidmanagement layer.

As used herein, the terms “comprise(s)” and “comprising” are open-ended;each specifies the presence of the feature that follows, e.g. acomponent, but does not preclude the presence of other features, e.g.elements, steps, components known in the art or disclosed herein. Theseterms based on the verb “comprise” should be read as encompassing thenarrower terms “consisting essentially of” which excludes any element,step or ingredient not mentioned which materially affect the way thefeature performs its function, and the term “consisting of” whichexcludes any element, step, or ingredient not specified. Any preferred,advantageous or exemplary embodiments described below are not limitingthe scope of the claims, unless specifically indicated to do so. Thewords “typically”, “normally”, “preferably”, “advantageously”, “inparticular” and the likes also qualify features which are not intendedto limit the scope of the claims, unless specifically indicated to doso. Any feature or component described herein in relation with oneembodiment may be combined with another feature or component of anotherembodiment unless indicated otherwise.

Unless indicated otherwise, the description and claims refer to theabsorbent article, absorbent core or component thereof before use (i.e.dry, and not loaded with a fluid) and conditioned at least 24 hours at21° C.+/−2° C. and 50+/−20% Relative Humidity (RH) and in a flat stateas shown for example on FIG. 1.

The absorbent articles of the invention and their components will now bediscussed generally and with exemplary reference to the Figures and thenumerals referred to in these Figures for illustration purpose. Theseexamples are not intended to limit the scope of the claims unlessspecifically indicated.

General Description of an Absorbent Article 20

An exemplary absorbent article according to the invention is representedin FIG. 1 in the form of a baby taped diaper 20. FIG. 1 is a top planview of the wearer-facing side of the exemplary diaper, in a flat-outstate, with portions of the structure being cut-away to more clearlyshow the construction of the diaper. For ease of understanding, thearticles of the invention are first discussed herein in this open andflattened configuration. The articles are then further bi- or tri-foldedin the transversal direction before being placed in the package, as willbe discussed further below. By bi-folded it is meant that the articlehas been folded once along a fold line parallel to the transversaldirection. By tri-folded it is meant that the article has been foldedtwice along a fold line parallel to the transverse direction. Thearticles may also be partially pre-folded along the longitudinaldirection, as will explained below. When placed on the wearer, thearticles adopt a further three-dimensional basin-like configuration,when the central portion and the side portions are folded relative toeach other along the absorbent core's folding guides.

This diaper 20 is shown for illustration purpose only, and the inventionis not limited to a specific type of personal hygiene absorbentarticles. The absorbent article can also be for example a pant-typearticle with pre-formed side seams. The articles may be intended forbabies, toddlers, but also for adult incontinence. The term “absorbentarticle” refers to a finished product that can be directly used by theuser. Unless otherwise indicated, dimensions and areas disclosed hereinapply to the article in this flat-out configuration. If some part of thearticle is under tension due to elasticized components, the article maybe typically flattened using clamps along the periphery of the articleand/or a sticky surface, so that the topsheet and backsheet can bepulled taut so as to be substantially flat. Closed articles such astraining pant may be cut open along the side seams to apply them on aflat surface. Closed belt products not having a side seam can also becut along the side edges.

The absorbent article 20 comprises a front edge 10, a back edge 12, andtwo longitudinally-extending side (lateral) edges 13, 14 joining thefront edge and the back edge. The front edge 10 is the edge of thearticle which is intended to be placed towards the front of the userwhen worn, and the back edge 12 is the opposite edge. The absorbentarticle is notionally divided by a longitudinal axis 80 extending fromthe front edge to the back edge of the article and dividing the articlein two substantially symmetrical halves relative to this axis, whenviewing the article from the wearer facing side in a flat outconfiguration, as exemplarily shown in FIG. 1. This axis 80 maytypically be concomitant with the longitudinal axis 80′ of the absorbentcore. The absorbent article has a length L as measured along the axis 80from the back edge to the front edge. The absorbent article can also benotionally divided by a transversal axis 90 into a front region and aback region of equal length measured on the longitudinal axis, when thearticle is in such a flat state. The article's transversal axis 90 isdefined as perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 80 and placed at halfthe length of the article. The point on the longitudinal axis 80 of thearticle placed at a distance of 0.45 of L (0.45L) from the front edge 10of the article is referred herein as the crotch point “C”.

The absorbent article is further notionally divided in a front region36, a back region 38 and in between a crotch region 37. The front region36 is defined as the region of the article extending from the front edge10 and having a length of a third of L along the longitudinal axis 80.The back region 38 is defined as the region of article extending fromthe back edge 12 of the article and having a length of one third of Lalong the longitudinal axis 80. The crotch region 37 is the intermediateregion between the front and back regions, and also having a length of athird of L along the longitudinal axis 80.

FIG. 2 shows the same diaper in a folded configuration wherein theabsorbent core has taken a basin-shaped configuration with the winglets610-613, 620-623 forming the side walls of the basin. For a betterunderstanding, the layers above the absorbent layer have been omittedfrom this drawing. The liquid management layer(s) can follow thisbasin-shaped three-dimensional configuration when the article is put onthe wearer, as will be described further below. Also, other elements ofthe absorbent article such as the cuff, backsheet and topsheet typicallyfollow and further extend the basin shape of the absorbent core in thefolded configuration.

FIG. 3 shows some of the layers of the diaper of FIG. 1 in explodedview. The wearer-facing side of the diaper comprises a liquid permeabletopsheet 24, the garment-facing surface comprises a liquid impermeablebacksheet 25, and an absorbent core 28 is present between the topsheet24 and the backsheet 25. The article represented comprises two liquidmanagement layers: a liquid acquisition layer 52 and a liquiddistribution layer 54. However in many applications a single liquidmanagement layer will be sufficient. The liquid management layers aretypically substantially free of superabsorbent polymer and are at leastpartially disposed between the topsheet and the absorbent core.

The article may also comprise a pair of barrier leg cuffs 34 each havinga free standing edge 66 with an elasticized section 35, as well asgasketing cuffs 32 comprising an elasticized component 33 in the chassisof the diaper. Typical other absorbent article components may also bepresent, some of which are represented such as the fastening system40-44 (however not included for pant-type diapers). The topsheet 24, thebacksheet 25, the absorbent core 28 and the other article components maybe assembled in a variety of well-known configurations, in particular bygluing, fusion and/or pressure bonding. Exemplary diaper assemblies arefor example generally described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,860,003, 5,221,274,5,554,145, 5,569,234, 5,580,411, and 6,004,306. The absorbent articlemay be advantageously thin, in particular for baby care applications,for example with a caliper of from 2.0 mm to 8.0 mm, in particular from3.0 mm to 6.0 mm, at the crotch point or any other point of the article,as measured using the Thickness Measurement Method described below. Theabsorbent article's maximal thickness as measured according to theThickness Measurement Method described herein may in particularadvantageously be no more than 8.0 mm, or no more than 6.0 mm.

The different components of the article and how they interact will nowbe discussed in more details.

Absorbent Core 28

As used herein, the term “absorbent core” refers to a component of anabsorbent article comprising an absorbent material layer, which istypically enclosed in a core wrap formed by a top layer and a bottomlayer. The absorbent core is typically an individual component which isattached directly or indirectly to other components of the article suchas a topsheet and a backsheet to form the article in a converting line.The terms “absorbent core” and “core” are herein used interchangeably.It is however not excluded that the absorbent material layer may bedirectly deposited on one or more layer(s) such as the liquid managementlayer or the backsheet without a separate core wrap, in which case thecore wrap may be at least partially formed by one of these layers.

The absorbent core comprises a layer of absorbent material thatcomprises a central portion 60, and two side portions 61, 62 disposedtransversally outward on opposite sides of the central portion, asillustrated in FIG. 5. A first folding guide 261 and a second foldingguide 262 are present between the central portion and the each of thetwo side portions respectively. The absorbent layer, including each ofthe central portion and the side portions may be typically symmetricalrelative to the longitudinal centerline 80′ of the core.

The absorbent material comprises a superabsorbent polymer.Advantageously, the absorbent core may be substantially free ofcellulosic fibers, but it is not excluded that the absorbent materialcomprises higher amount of cellulose fibers, for example up top 50% byweight of the absorbent material in the absorbent core. The core wrap isnot considered as absorbent material for the purpose of calculating thepercentage of superabsorbent polymer (SAP) in the absorbent core. Theabsorbent core is typically the component with the most absorbentcapacity of all the components of the absorbent article, and whichcomprises all, or at least the majority of, superabsorbent polymer(SAP). The absorbent core may consist essentially of, or consist of, thecore wrap, the absorbent material and optionally adhesives. The corewrap can be typically formed by one or two layers of a nonwoven, paperor tissue material with a suitable bonding along its longitudinal sides,and optionally also at its front end and back end, for containing theabsorbent material.

The absorbent cores of the invention can be typically laid flat on aplanar surface, as exemplarily represented on FIG. 5. The absorbentcores may also be typically thin and conformable, so that they can alsobe laid on a curved surface for example a drum during the makingprocess, or stored and handled as a continuous roll of stock materialbefore being converted into an absorbent article. Unless otherwiseindicated, dimensions and areas disclosed herein apply to the core inthis flat-out configuration. The same applies to an absorbent article,as exemplarily represented in FIG. 1 as a taped diaper, in which thecore is incorporated.

The absorbent core may be relatively thin relative to its thickness, andprincipally extend in a transversal direction and a longitudinaldirection. These directions typically correspond to the transversal 80and longitudinal 90 directions respectively of the article in which thecore is incorporated. The absorbent core 28 can thus be notionallydivided by a longitudinal axis 80′ parallel to the longitudinaldirection and extending from the front edge 280 to the back edge 282 anddividing the core in two substantially symmetrical halves relative tothis axis. Similarly, a transversal axis 90′ can be defined as dividingthe core in two halves of equal length along the perpendicular directionin the plane formed by the core.

The absorbent core 28, as illustrated in FIGS. 5-6, may comprise a frontedge 280, a back edge 282 and two longitudinal side edges 284, 286joining the front edge and the back edge. The front edge of the core isthe edge intended to be placed towards the front edge of the absorbentarticle in which the core is or will be integrated. Typically the frontand back edges 280, 282 of the core may be shorter than the longitudinalside edges 284, 286 of the core. The absorbent core also comprises a topside 288 and a bottom side 290. The top side of the core is placed orintended to be placed towards the wearer-facing side (topsheet 24) ofthe article and the bottom side is the side placed or intended to beplaced towards the garment-facing side (backsheet 25) in the finishedarticle.

Core Wrap 16, 16′

The core wrap may, as shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 6,comprise a first substrate 16 on the top side 288 of the core (hereinalso referred to as top layer) and a second substrate 16′ on the bottomside 290 of the core (herein also referred to as bottom layer). The toplayer may be advantageously more hydrophilic than the bottom layer, forexample after treatment with a wetting agent as is known in the art. Thetop layer may also have smaller pores than the bottom layer in order toavoid absorbent material migrating towards the body-wearer facing sideof the article. The bottom layer may be thicker and/or have more loft toavoid pock marking, i.e. to prevent absorbent particles from the corepocking holes into the backsheet. It is however not excluded that thecore wrap may be formed for example by a single piece of nonwovenmaterial sealed along its length.

When the core wrap is made of two substrates, a C-wrap seal 72 alongeach longitudinal side edges 284, 286 of the core may be formed as shownon FIG. 6. In such a C-wrap seal, a flap of the first substrate isfolded over the second substrate along each of the longitudinal sideedges of the core, and this flap attached on the second substrate, forexample using an adhesive or fusion-bond 72, as is known in the art. Thefront and back edges of the core wrap may be for example bonded flat toeach other (so-called “sandwich” bonding). Examples of such core wrapconstructions can be found in WO2014/093310. It is also possible to forma core wrap from a single piece of nonwoven material which is foldedover the superabsorbent material layer and use a small overlap to thenonwoven to itself in the longitudinal direction. The core wrap may besealed along its periphery or only along its longitudinal edges or notsealed along any edges. The central portion and the side portions of theabsorbent layer may typically not extend to the very edges of the corewrap so that sufficient core wrap material is present to provide forsuch seals.

The core wrap substrate may be any material suitable for receiving andcontaining the absorbent material. Typical substrates are in particularnonwovens, paper, tissues, films, wovens, or laminate of any of these.The core wrap may in particular be formed by a nonwoven web, such as acarded nonwoven, spunbond nonwoven (“S”) or meltblown nonwoven (“M”),and laminates of any of these. For example spunmelt polypropylenenonwovens are suitable, in particular those having a laminate web SMS,or SMMS, or SSMMS, structure, and having a basis weight range of about 5gsm to 15 gsm. Suitable materials are for example disclosed in U.S. Pat.No. 7,744,576, US2011/0268932A1, US2011/0319848A1 and US2011/0250413A1.Nonwoven materials provided from synthetic fibers may be used, such asPE, PET and in particular PP. The overall shape of the core wrap may berectangular, as seen on FIG. 5, as may be relatively easily produced byunwinding the core wrap material(s) from one or two rolls with fixedwidth and cutting and optionally folding the wrap material to form theedges 280, 282, 284, 286 of the core. Other shapes for the periphery ofthe core wrap are also possible, for example following generally theshape of the absorbent layer.

As represented in FIG. 6 by the bond 70′, the top layer 16 of the corewrap may be advantageously bonded to the bottom layer 16′ through thefolding guide areas, for example by using an adhesive bond, a mechanicalbond, a fusion bond, an ultrasonic bond or any combinations of these.The folding guides may thus be advantageously areas of the core whichare substantially free of absorbent material to facilitate making thesebonds. These bonds can help preventing that the absorbent material fillsthe areas of the folding guides prematurely, before use or during use(when the absorbent material swells). Such bonding between the top layerand the lower layer of the core wrap has been disclosed for example inWO2012/170,778 (Rosati). The core wrap may also be bonded in otherareas, for example in areas formed by the gaps between the winglets, orbetween the side portion and the longitudinal side edges of the core.Such bonds 70″ may be for example formed by an adhesive bond, amechanical bond, a fusion bond, an ultrasonic bond or any combinationsof these. Although other type of bonds may be used, an auxiliary glue 70may be applied to the side of the top layer and/or the bottom layerfacing the absorbent layer across the width of the absorbent core, forexample by slot-coating as is known in the art and as will discussedfurther below, to form these bonds 70′, 70″. This may help immobilizingthe absorbent material according to the desired pattern. C-wrap seals 72may also be formed along the longitudinally-extending side edges of thecore, as shown on FIG. 6, for example by slot-coating a glue. Thesebonds 70′, 70″, except for the C-wrap bonding 72, may be designed toopen when the absorbent core reaches a certain amount of saturation, torelease more space where the absorbent material can expand.

Absorbent Layer's Central Portion 60

As illustrated on FIG. 5, the central portion 60 comprises a front edge,adjacent the front edge 280 of the core, a back edge adjacent the backedge 282 of the core and two longitudinal edges connecting the front andback edges. The central portion has a length L′ measured along thelongitudinal axis 80′. The central portion 60 is advantageously shaped,or in other words non-rectangular, although a rectangular shape for thecentral portion is not excluded. The central portion may have a maximumwidth W1 for example towards its front edge and/or its back edge, and aminimum width W3 in an intermediate position, as measured along thetransversal direction 90′.

The longitudinal edges of the central portion may form a first recessand a second recess respectively, in particular in an intermediateposition between the front edge and the back edge of the centralportion. The overall shape of the central portion may thus be a dog-boneor a hour-glass shape when seen from the above, as illustrated in FIG.5. The central portion may have a minimum width W3 at an intermediatelongitudinal position between the front edge and back edge of thecentral portion. The minimum width W3 of the central portion may forexample range from 10% to 80% of the maximum width W1 of the centralportion, in particular from 15% to 70% of W1, in particular from 20% to60% of W1, for example 40%. The central portion may have, asrepresented, a constant width in the areas outside the recesses, butother configurations are possible, for example the width maycontinuously expand towards the front and/or back edges of the core.Although the front edge and the back edge of the central portion may besubstantially straight, it is not excluded that these may be curved,concave or convex, or one convex and the other concave.

The central portion may be unitary, as represented, but it is notexcluded that it comprises sub-sections, for example separated byfurther transversally-orientated folding guides to provide moreflexibility in the longitudinal direction. The amount of absorbentmaterial in the central portion may be typically profiled, so that ahigher basis weight of absorbent material is disposed towards the middleof the central portion, in particular between the side portions, andtowards the front edge of the central portion, relative to the back edgeof the central portion.

Absorbent Layer's Side Portions 61, 62

The first side portion 61 and the second side portion 62 of theabsorbent layer may be typically at least partially disposed within theareas defined by the recesses formed by the intermediate tapering of thecentral portion 60. The side portions may expand transversally outwardfurther than the central portion, however this may require additionalcore wrap material on the longitudinal side to cover the overhangingside portions. Thus it may be advantageous that the side portions areentirely encompassed within the recesses formed by the central portionso as to eliminate or reduce the need for additional core wrap materialon the longitudinal sides of the core. The outward-most positions of theside portions may thus be flush with, or inwards of, thelongitudinally-extending side edges of the central portion at theirlargest width. The first and second side portions may typically besymmetrical to each other relative to the longitudinal axis 80′ of thecore.

Winglets (610-613, 620-623)

Each side portion 61, 62 comprises a plurality of neighboring winglets610-613, 620-623. The winglets may also be described as flaps, andtypically have a small size relative to the area of the central portion.FIG. 5 shows a close-up view of some of the winglets on the second sideportion 62. Each winglet is defined by a proximal side 6200, 6210, 6220,which is closest to a folding guide and from which the winglet extendoutward, and at least two and typically three further sides. Theproximal side of each winglet may be directly adjacent, i.e. less than10 mm away from the centerline of the closest folding guide. Eachwinglet may be completely separated from the neighboring winglets, butit is not excluded that some or all of the winglets are linked to eachother by a continuous absorbent material area proximal to the foldingguide. An alternative arrangement for the winglets is shown in FIG. 11.

Within each side portion, the winglets are generally aligned next toanother, with their neighboring sides 6202-6211, 6213-6221 . . .separated by a gap as illustrated on FIG. 5. At least one of the gaps oneach side portion may be generally triangular or in other wordwedge-shaped, when the article and core is shown in a flattened-outstate as shown on FIG. 5. For these triangular gaps, the width of thegaps increases with the distance from the proximal sides of thewinglets. The angle α (alpha) formed by the neighboring sides of twoneighboring winglets at their proximal sides may for example range offrom about 5° to about 60°, in particular 10° to about 50°, for example30°. Typically, the higher the angle, the higher the radius of curvaturecan be achieved in the basin configuration. This angle may be the sameor different for each gap.

In addition to the generally triangular gaps, at least one of the gaps(not represented) on each side portion may be have substantiallyconstant width. These gaps may be in particular generally straight, inparticular be parallel to the transversal axis as illustrated in theFigures, but it is also possible that they are straight and angledrelative to the transversal axis, or not straight but curved. The widthof such gaps gap may in particular range of from 1 mm to 8 mm, moreprecisely from 2 mm to 6 mm, but other values are possible. Theseconstant width gaps may or may not decrease when the absorbent corecomes into the basin configuration. Rather, they provide for increaseflexibility of the side portions which may be useful needed when theabsorbent article is put on the wearer and the core takes its basinshape when the article is worn on the user.

The winglets in each side portion may all have the same shape, butadvantageously they will have different shapes that are in particularadapted to the curvature of the closet folding guides. The winglets mayin particular be generally triangular, especially for the first and lastwinglets of a side portion (as winglets 610, 620, 613, 623 in FIG. 5)and generally quadrilateral for the intermediate winglets 611, 621, 612,622. Various quadrilateral shapes are possible, in particular thewinglets may be generally trapezoidal (quadrilateral with at least twosides parallel). The word “generally” as used herein means that thecorners and sides of the winglets are not necessarily geometricallyexactly forming the shape indicated, but the corners may be slightlyrounded and the sides not delimited by perfect straight lines. Asrepresented in the close-up view on FIG. 5, some or all of the wingletsmay have a distal edge 6201, 6212, 6222 parallel to the longitudinalside edge 284, 286 of the core.

When the absorbent core is folded along the folding guides to form thethree-dimensional basin, the gaps between the neighboring sides of thewinglets decrease, in other words the neighboring sides become closer toanother, and may optionally contact each other. This helps formingstable side walls for the three-dimensional basin in dry and wet state.It may be advantageous to have a combination of different type ofwinglets to provide for a better folding of the side portions, inparticular the winglets may have different lengths as measured in thelongitudinal direction and/or different shape to provide an improvedside seal. The shape and number of winglets may be adapted for differentsizes of absorbent articles, and for the different stage of developmentof the wearer. Each side portion may comprise for example from 3 to 10winglets, in particular from 4 to 8 winglets.

Absorbent Core's Folding Guides 261, 262

The central portion 60 and the first side portion 61 are separated by afirst folding guide 261, and likewise the central portion 60 and thesecond side portion 62 are separated by a second folding guide 262. Thefolding guides facilitate the folding of the absorbent core so that thecore forms a three-dimensional shape similar to a basin, as illustratedin FIG. 2, when it is placed on the wearer. The side portions of theabsorbent material layer form the side walls of the basin while thefront and back sides of the central portion are tilted upwards towardseach other. The folding guides may in particular be areas substantiallyfree of absorbent material between the central portion and the sideportions. By “substantially free” it is meant that accidentalcontamination by some absorbent material such as SAP particles duringthe making process is not excluded. The width of absorbent material-freeareas may be substantially constant through the folding guides or mayvary, for example the width of the material-free areas may graduallyincrease towards one or both extremities of each of the folding guides.As represented in FIG. 6, the top layer 16 of the core wrap may beadvantageously bonded to the bottom layer 16′ through the foldingguides. This bond 70′ may be for example an adhesive bond, a mechanicalbond, a fusion bond, an ultrasonic bond or any combinations of these,formed in the areas of the folding guides as indicated previously. Thecore wrap may also be bonded in other areas of the core, for example inthe areas or gaps between the winglets 70″, and also to form the C-wrapseals 72 along the longitudinally-extending side edges of the core, asshown on FIG. 6.

The folding guides may advantageously be curved towards the centralportion 60, and the recesses of the central portion, the proximal sideedges of the side portions and the folding guides may generally runparallel to each other. In particular, both extremities of each foldingguides may completely extend to the longitudinally-extending side edgesof the absorbent layer, as illustrated in FIG. 5, thus completelyseparating the side portions and the central portion, when the articleand core are considered in a flattened out configuration. In otherwords, the folding guides are advantageously not completely surroundedby absorbent material. In this way, the side portions can easily foldrelative to the central portion to provide the upstanding side walls ofthe basin in the folded basin configuration. The folding guides may becurved along a smooth curve without inflexion points, as in a couple ofinverted brackets: ) (. It is also possible that each of the foldingguides may form a curve or a series of segments having an inflexionpoint at their closest position from each other, for example each beinggenerally “v” shaped with a 90° rotation, thus appearing together as apair of sign bigger than and smaller than: > <.

The folding guides may be entirely continuous as illustrated in FIGS. 5and 11, but it is not excluded that the folding guides areintermittently formed, for example by a series of discrete material freeareas or embossed areas each separated by small gaps, as long as thediscrete sections are sufficiently close and aligned to provide for thedesired folding guide function.

The folding guides may be more generally provided by any means known inthe art, for example as disclosed in WO2006/068549A1 (Hansson) and haveany shape, in particular be straight and parallel to the longitudinaldirection 80. The folding guides may be for example grooves or channelshaving a certain width, for example from 1 mm to 20 mm, and comprisingeither no absorbent material (as illustrated in FIG. 6) or someabsorbent material at a lower basis weight than the surrounding areas ofthe absorbent layer, for example having a basis weight which is from 10%to 80%, in particular 15% to 70%, of the basis weight of the immediatelyadjacent central portion and/or side portions. A folding guide may bealso provided by embossing an absorbent material which is permanentlycompressible such as a fibrous absorbent material or foam. In this case,the folding guides may be formed by grooves having a higher degree ofcompression than the surrounding areas of the absorbent layer. It isalso known to form folding guides by slitting the material of anabsorbent layer, if the absorbent material can be slit such as somesolid foam-like absorbent material. Of course a combination of thesemeans can be used to form the folding guides. The folding guides have acenterline generally following the guides along their middle and asshown in dotted line on FIG. 5.

Absorbent Material

The absorbent layer comprises an absorbent material. The absorbentmaterial may be the same in the central portion 60 and the side portions61, 62, for simplicity of manufacture, but it is not excluded thatdifferent materials are used in the central portion and the sideportions for example. The absorbent material comprises a high proportionof superabsorbent polymer (herein abbreviated as “SAP”). The term“superabsorbent polymer” refers herein to absorbent materials, which maybe cross-linked polymeric materials, and that can absorb at least 15times their weight of an aqueous 0.9% saline solution as measured usingthe Centrifuge Retention Capacity (CRC) test (EDANA method WSP241.2-05E). The SAP may in particular have a CRC value of from 20 to 50g/g, or from 25 to 40 g/g. The SAP content represents at least 85% andup to 100% by weight of the absorbent material of the absorbent core.The SAP may in particular be in particulate forms (SAP particles) butother forms are also possible, such as absorbent foam or fibers. Furtherdetailed examples of absorbent material, in particular SAP are disclosedin WO2014/093310 (Ehrnsperger). In particular, the absorbent materialmay comprise or consist of SAP particles that require a time to reach anuptake of 20 g/g (T20) of less than 240 s as measured according to theK(t) test method described in WO2012/174026 (Ehrnsperger). The SAPparticles used may have a permeability at equilibrium expressed as UPM(Urine Permeability Measurement) value of at least 10×10⁻⁷ (cm³·s)/g, inparticular at least 15×10⁻⁷ (cm³·s)/g, or at least 20×10⁻⁷ (cm³·s)/g, orfrom 10 to 50×10⁻⁷ (cm³·s)/g, as measured by the test method indicatedin WO2012/174026A1.

The absorbent material in the core wrap may be in particularsubstantially free of cellulose fibers, in particular it may compriseless than 15% by weight of cellulose fibers relative to the total weightof absorbent material, in particular less than 10%, or less than 5% anddown to 0% by weight of cellulose fibers. The absorbent core may thus berelatively thin, in particular thinner than conventional corescomprising cellulosic fibers. In particular, the caliper of the core(before use) as measured at the point corresponding to the crotch pointC of the article, or advantageously at any points of the surface of thecore, may be from 0.25 mm to 5.0 mm, in particular from 0.5 mm to 4.0mm, as measured according to the Thickness Measurement Method describedfurther below.

The absorbent material layer may be continuous in the central portionand the side portions, as exemplary illustrated in FIG. 5. A continuouslayer of absorbent material may in particular be obtained by theaddition of two discontinuous absorbent sub-layers as taught inUS2008/312617 (Hundorf), the first absorbent sub-layer including a firstsubstrate and the second absorbent sub-layer including a secondsubstrate, the first and second absorbent sub-layers further includingsuperabsorbent particulate polymer material deposited on said first andsecond substrates and thermoplastic adhesive material covering theabsorbent particulate polymer material on the respective first andsecond substrates. The first and second absorbent sub-layers arecombined together such that at least a portion of said thermoplasticadhesive material of said first absorbent sub-layer contacts at least aportion of the thermoplastic adhesive material of the secondsub-absorbent layer, the resulting absorbent particulate polymermaterial layer between the first and second substrates may be thussubstantially continuously distributed across the absorbent particulatepolymer material area. It is also not excluded that the central and sideportions may comprise a multiplicity of land areas comprising theabsorbent material, with absorbent material-free junction areasin-between, as is known in the art for example in US2008/312625(Hundorf).

The basis weight (amount deposited per unit of surface) of the absorbentmaterial may also be varied to create a macroscopically profileddistribution of absorbent material in the longitudinal direction and/orthe transversal direction. Typically the absorbent material of the coremay be advantageously distributed in somewhat lower amount towards theback edge of the core as more absorbency is typically required towardsthe front and middle region of the core. Further detailed examples ofabsorbent material distribution that can be used herein are disclosed inWO2014/093310 (Ehrnsperger). The side portions may comprise an absorbentmaterial at a constant basis weight or may also have a profileddistribution. The central portion may typically comprise a largeroverall amount of absorbent material than the two side portionscombined, for example in a ratio ranging from 20:1 to 2:1.

The absorbent material may be deposited on a substrate to form thecentral portion and the side portions by adapting any known processesthat allow relatively precise deposition of absorbent material, inparticular SAP, advantageously at relatively high speed. The absorbentmaterial may be deposited for example using a SAP printing technology asdisclosed in US2006/024433 (Blessing), US2008/0312617 andUS2010/0051166A1 (both to Hundorf et al.). This technique uses atransfer device such as a printing roll to deposit SAP particles onto asubstrate disposed on the grid of a support (e.g. a lay-on drum). Thegrid may include a plurality of cross bars extending substantiallyparallel to and spaced from one another so as to form ribs extendingbetween the cross-bars. The SAP is deposited in the undulations of thesubstrate inside these ribs. As known in the art indicated above, twosuch SAP printing roll/laying-on drum systems working in parallel can beused to print twice a SAP layer on two substrates, the substrates beingthen assembled with the SAP layers in contact with each other thusforming a continuous layer of SAP between a top layer and a bottom layer(the core wrap). This technology allows high-speed and precisedeposition of SAP on a substrate in a desired pattern.

US2012/0312491 (Jackels) more recently discloses how raised elements onthe transfer device may collaborate with corresponding mating strips onthe support grid to provide areas free of deposited absorbent material.Such raised elements can serve to form the folding guides of theinvention. Additional raised elements can further help forming the gapsbetween the winglets. The top and bottom layers of the core wrap can bebonded together through some of these material-free areas to form thefolding guides and the gaps between the winglets. Thus a SAP printingtechnique may be advantageously used to make absorbent cores accordingto the invention. Of course it is not excluded that other manufacturingtechniques may be used, or that products are hand-made for researchpurpose for example.

Further Components of the Absorbent Core

The absorbent core may optionally comprise one or more layers of glue tohelp immobilizing the absorbent material and/or form bonds between thelayers of the core wrap, for example as disclosed in US2006/024433(Blessing), US2008/0312617 and US2010/051166A1 (both to Hundorf et al.)and US2012/0312491 (Jackels). The absorbent core may in particularcomprise at least one auxiliary glue layer 70 applied on the inner sideof the top layer 16 and/or the inner side of bottom layer 16′ of thecore wrap towards the absorbent layer. The auxiliary glue may be applieddirectly over the substrate on which the absorbent material issubsequently deposited, thus at least partially immobilizing theabsorbent material on the substrate. The auxiliary glue may also havefor function to at least partially form the core wrap bond 70′ withinthe folding guides, in particular through the material free areas 261,262, and/or bonds 70″ in the gaps between the winglets and transversallyoutward of the side portion. The auxiliary glue 70 may also help formingC-wrap bond 72 between the core wrap layers, whereas a different,stronger glue may be used for these bonds 72. The auxiliary glue mayalso be useful to improve the adhesion of a fibrous thermoplasticadhesive material, when present, to the substrate.

FIG. 7 shows an exemplary application pattern of a glue layer, referredto herein as auxiliary glue 70, which may be used to provide for bonds70′ between the top layer 16 and the bottom layer 16′ in the foldingguides and for bonds 70″ in the areas of the gaps between the winglets70″. The glue used may be any hotmelt adhesive known in the art. Theglue layer may be applied on the inner surface of the top layer 16and/or the bottom layer 16′ of the core wrap. The auxiliary glue may beapplied directly over the substrate layer on which the absorbentmaterial is subsequently deposited, thus at least partially immobilizingthe absorbent material on the substrate. The auxiliary glue is appliedover an application area of the layer. The glue application area may forexample cover at least the whole of the folding guides and the sideportions to provide for a bonding in these areas of the top layer andthe bottom layer. As represented in FIG. 7, the glue application areacan also be shorter than the central portion to reduce the usage ofadhesive material, however it is not excluded that the glue applicationarea may be as long as or longer than the central portion.

The auxiliary glue can be applied by any adhesive applicator known inthe field, in particular bead, slot or spray nozzles. For example, asrepresented, the auxiliary glue can be applied using a slot coatingprocess as a pattern comprising a plurality of spaced-apart glue slotswhich may each extend in the longitudinal direction. The slots may forexample have a width of from 0.5 mm to 3 mm, and/or have a lateralspacing there-between of from 0.5 mm to 4 mm.

The absorbent core may also comprise a fibrous thermoplastic adhesivematerial (not shown), also known as microfibrous glue, to helpimmobilizing the absorbent material within the core wrap. The fibrousthermoplastic adhesive material may be applied, typically by spraying,over an absorbent material layer that has been discontinuously depositedon a substrate during the core making process, thus forming land andjunction areas as indicated above. The fibrous thermoplastic adhesivematerial contacts the absorbent material and the substrate layer in theabsorbent material free junction areas. This imparts an essentiallythree-dimensional net-like structure to the fibrous layer ofthermoplastic adhesive material, which in itself is essentially atwo-dimensional structure of relatively small thickness, as compared tothe dimension in length and width directions. Thereby, the fibrousthermoplastic adhesive material may provide cavities to cover theabsorbent material, and thereby immobilizes this absorbent material. Adual layer core can thus be constructed wherein the land areas of onelayer correspond to the material-free junction areas of the other layerand vice versa, resulting in continuous dual absorbent layer.

The adhesive material may advantageously help providing a highimmobilization of the absorbent material in dry and wet state. Theabsorbent core advantageously achieve an SAP loss of no more than about70%, 60%, 50%, 40%, 30%, 20%, or 10% according to the Wet ImmobilizationTest described in US2010/051166A1.

Liquid Management Layer(s) 52, 54

The article may advantageously comprise at least one liquid managementlayer 52, 54 at least partially present between the topsheet and theabsorbent core. Liquid management layers function to quickly acquireand/or distribute the fluid away from the topsheet and into the core.These liquid management layers are sometimes called “wicking layer”,“surge layer”, “acquisition layer” or “distribution layer”. Typically,liquid management layers do not comprise SAP, as this may slow theacquisition and distribution of the fluid. The prior art discloses manytype of liquid management layer, see for example WO2000/59430 (Daley),WO95/10996 (Richards), U.S. Pat. No. 5,700,254 (McDowall), WO02/067809(Graef). Liquid management layers are typically placed symmetricallyrelative to the longitudinal axis of the article, but otherconfigurations are possible. The liquid management layers may betypically shorter at least in the longitudinal dimension and typicallyalso in the transversal direction relative to the absorbent materiallayer of the absorbent core.

Liquid management layers help improving the fluid handling properties ofthe article, in particular for those articles having no or relativelylittle cellulose fibers in the absorbent core. Cellulose fibers cantypically help acquiring and distributing the fluid within the core. Inthe present invention, where the absorbent material of the core may besubstantially free of cellulose fibers, it is thus advantageous to haveat least one liquid management layer. The inventors have however foundthat conventionally shaped liquid management layer may hinder theabsorbent core from forming the desired basin shape.

When present, the liquid management layer(s) may thus comprise foldingguides which are at least partially superposed with the folding guidesof the absorbent core. Thus the liquid management layer can easily foldin a similar manner than the core when it forms the three-dimensionalbasin. As illustrated in FIGS. 8-9, the liquid management layers mayoptionally also comprise a central portion 60′, 60″, a first and secondside portions 61′-62′, 61″ 62″, and a first and second folding guides261′-262′, 261″-262″. The liquid management layer's folding guides, whenpresent, may be at least partially superposed with the folding guides ofthe absorbent core. By “generally superposed”, it is meant that theposition and shape of the folding guides of the liquid management layervertically correspond to the underlying folding guides of the absorbentcore, so that the liquid management layer can readily assume the shapeof the basin formed by the underlying absorbent core when the article isput on and worn by the wearer. It is not necessary that the foldingguides of the two layers are exactly superposed, and there may be forexample a slight transversal shift due to the unavoidable processtolerance in modern high speed making process or to take into accountthe thickness of the layers when forming the three-dimensional basin.Thus it may be acceptable that the center lines of both folding guidesare within a distance of 10 mm or less, for example 5 mm, from eachother when considered in the plane of the article. As illustrated in thedrawings, the liquid management layer's folding guides may be superposedwith the folding guides of the absorbent core over the whole length ofthe liquid management layer's folding guides, but a lower percentage ofoverlap is also possible. It is not excluded that there may be areaswhere the folding guides of these layers do not overlap, or the foldingguides of one layer may be shorter than the folding guides of anotherlayer. For example, the liquid management layer's folding guides mayoverlap over at least 50%, 60%, 70% or more of the overall length of theabsorbent core's folding guides. In the remaining areas where there isno overlap, the liquid management layer's folding guides may for examplebe off-set relative to the absorbent core's folding guides, or may beshorter and thus not extend to the same length as the absorbent's corefolding guides.

If winglets are present in the side portions of the liquid managementlayer, these may be constructed in a similar or same configuration asthe underlying absorbent core, including the shape of the winglets andthe gaps between the winglets. However, it is also considered that whenmore simple constructions are desired, the liquid management layer'sside portions may also comprise no or different winglets. The liquidmanagement layer's side portions may thus also each be comprised of asingle piece of liquid management material delimited by a distalstraight line and proximal curve, or two curves, which may in particularform crescent-shaped side portions.

The article of the invention may also comprise two or more liquidmanagement layers, and these may form a unitary layer or remain discretelayers, which may be loosely attached to each other. The article may inparticular comprise two liquid management layers: an acquisition layer52 directly under the topsheet and a distribution layer 54 between theacquisition layer and the absorbent core, as illustrated in FIG. 4a .Such dual layer liquid management layers are for example disclosed infurther details in WO2014/093323 (Bianchi) with a distribution layercomprising cross-linked cellulosic fibers and the acquisition layer acarded, resin-bonded nonwoven. The invention is however not restrictedto this example having two liquid management layers. The majority ofarticles have in particular for cost reason only one liquid managementlayer. FIG. 4b for example shows such an absorbent article comprisingonly an acquisition layer 52. FIG. 4c shows another example of absorbentarticle comprising only a distribution layer 54. As indicatedpreviously, there may also be no liquid management layer between theabsorbent core and the topsheet, and/or one such layer may be presentunder the absorbent core, between the absorbent core and the backsheet.

The article may also comprise a liquid management layer that does nothave folding guides. Some liquid management layers are made of materialrelatively flexible and bendable so that they do not prevent to asubstantial extent the underlying absorbent core from folding in thebasin shape. A further liquid management layer having a width inferioror equal to the width W3 of the central portion of the absorbent corebetween the side portions may also be provided without expected negativeeffect on the folding of the absorbent core.

The following will describe in more details two examples of liquidmanagement layers according to the invention, which may be respectivelyused as an acquisition layer 52 and a distribution layer 54 alone in anarticle (as illustrated in FIG. 4b and FIG. 4c ) or in combination (asillustrated in FIG. 4a ).

FIG. 8 shows an exemplary liquid management layer 54 in isolation. Thislayer may for example primarily function as a distribution layer,although this is not to be considered limiting. The function of adistribution layer is to spread the insulting fluid liquid over a largersurface within the article so that the absorbent capacity of the corecan be more efficiently used. Typically, distribution layers can be madeof a material comprising synthetic or cellulosic fibers and having arelatively low density. The distribution layer material may be anonwoven or a fibrous layer comprising unbound or loosely boundhydrophilic fibers, in particular a layer of cross-linked cellulosicfibers. The density of the distribution layer may vary depending on thecompression of the article, but may typically range from 0.03 to 0.25g/cm³, in particular from 0.05 to 0.15 g/cm³ measured at 0.30 psi (2.07kPa). The distribution layer may also be a material having a waterretention value of from 25 to 60, preferably from 30 to 45, measured asindicated in the procedure disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,137,537.

In a particular example, the liquid management layer 54 may comprise atleast 50% by weight, optionally consisting of 100%, of cross-linkedcellulosic fibers. The cross-linked cellulosic fibers may be crimped,twisted, or curled, or a combination thereof including crimped, twisted,and curled. This type of material has been used in the past indisposable diapers as part of an acquisition system, for example US2008/0312622 A1 (Hundorf), however not in the manner of the invention.The cross-linked cellulosic fibers provide higher resilience andtherefore higher resistance against the compression in the productpackaging or in use conditions, e.g. under baby weight. This providesthe layer with a higher void volume, permeability and liquid absorption,and hence reduced leakage and improved dryness. The liquid managementlayer 54 may also be typically profiled so that more material is presentat the front and middle part of the article relative to the back of thearticle. The distribution layer may typically have an average basisweight of from 30 to 400 g/m², in particular from 100 to 300 g/m², withthe basis weight varying along the length of the article so that morematerial is present at the front and middle of the layer than at theback. The liquid management layer 54 may thus be profiled and/or shapedrounded towards the back of the article, as exemplarily disclosed inWO2014/093323 (Bianchi).

As indicated above, the liquid management layer may generally follow thecontour and construction of the absorbent core over which it isdisposed, although it may also be in general shorter in longitudinaland/or transversal direction. In general, the same features disclosedpreviously for the central portion, side portions and folding guides ofthe core can apply to the liquid management layer. The liquid managementlayer may thus comprise as represented in FIG. 8, a central portion 60′extending longitudinally, but which may be shorter than the centralportion 60 of the core, and two folding guides 261′, 262′. These foldingguides may be made as indicated previously for the folding guides 261,262 of the core, in particular and as illustrated in FIG. 8, they maycomprise areas substantially free of the liquid management material, inthis case substantially free of unbound or loosely bound hydrophilicfibers such as cross-linked cellulosic fibers.

The liquid management layer's side portions 61′, 62′ may furthercomprise winglets 610′-617′, 620′-627′, which as shown may generallycorrespond in shape and configuration to the winglets 610-613, 620-623of the absorbent core. As illustrated in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, the liquidmanagement layer may in addition to the triangular gaps between thewinglets also comprise straight gap having a constant width along theirlength, which may be described as slits (as illustrated by the gapsbetween the winglet pairs 610′-611′, 614′-615′, 615′-616′, 616′-617′).These slits may provide additional flexibility of the liquid managementlayer while the small distance between the winglets ensures optimalfluid acquisition and distribution.

In general, the liquid management layer folding guides, central portionand side portions may form a three-dimensional basin similar to the oneformed by the core when put on the wearer. When winglets are present inthe liquid management layer, these may also form better fitting sidewalls for three-dimensional basin. However it is believed that theloosely bound fibers forming such a layer 54 may be sufficientlyconformable so that winglets in the liquid management layer are notnecessary. Each liquid management layer's side portions may thusalternatively have more simple shape, such as crescent-shaped orsemi-circular, with one of the edge parallel to the liquid managementlayer folding guide.

Such a fibrous distribution layer 54 may for example be made on-line bydepositing the fibers, for example cross-lined cellulosic fibers, on acarrier sheet on a forming surface having ridges corresponding to theareas where no fibrous material is desired. Deposition chambers areknown wherein a carrier sheet is provided on a forming surface having aseries of holes connected to a vacuum, so that the vacuum pulls thefibers in the desired emplacements to form a desired deposited layer.The forming surface of these deposition chambers can be modified toprovide a layer of fibrous material according to the invention having acentral portion, side portions and optionally winglets. The carriersheet should thus have at least the same dimension as a fibrous liquidmanagement layer. The carrier sheet may be the topsheet, another liquidmanagement layer such as a nonwoven acquisition layer 52, or any otherlayer of the article, for example the core wrap.

FIG. 9 illustrates another example of liquid management layer 52 thatcan be used in the present invention. This liquid management layer 52may for example be used as an acquisition layer in the article, and maybe used alone or in combination with another liquid management layersuch as a liquid management layer/distribution layer 54. The liquidmanagement layer 52 illustrated in FIG. 9 may be made of a nonwoven webrather than loosely bound fibers as for the layer 54 discussed before.The nonwoven web may be for example provided as a continuous roll ofmaterial that is cut according to the desired length and pattern as itunwound in a converting line.

A “nonwoven web” or “nonwoven” as used herein means a manufacturedsheet, web or batt of directionally or randomly orientated fibers,bonded by friction, and/or cohesion and/or adhesion, excluding paper andproducts which are woven, knitted, tufted, stitch-bonded incorporatingbinding yarns or filaments, or felted by wet-milling, whether or notadditionally needled. The fibers may be of natural or man-made originand may be staple or continuous filaments or be formed in situ.Commercially available fibers have diameters ranging from less thanabout 0.001 mm to more than about 0.2 mm and they come in severaldifferent forms such as short fibers (known as staple, or chopped),continuous single fibers (filaments or monofilaments), untwisted bundlesof continuous filaments (tow), and twisted bundles of continuousfilaments (yarn). Nonwoven webs can be formed by many processes such asmeltblowing, spunbonding, solvent spinning, electrospinning, carding andairlaying. The basis weight of nonwoven webs is usually expressed ingrams per square meter (g/m² or gsm).

The acquisition layer 52 is typically placed directly under thetopsheet, and above a distribution layer if such a layer is present. Theacquisition layer may typically be or comprise a nonwoven, for example athrough-air bonded (“TAB”) carded nonwoven, a resin-bonded (“RB”) cardednonwoven, a spunbond or spunlace (hydroentangled) nonwoven. TAB cardednonwovens may for example be made from soft PE/PP bicomponent staplefibers. The air through bonding process locks in loft and resistance tocompression. Resin-bonded carded nonwovens may be made from multi-denierpolyester staple fibers (for example: 50/50 or 40/60 mix of 6 denier and9 denier fibers). Its resilient and open structures are designed toprovide excellent fluid acquisition properties. Such acquisition layersare available directly from suppliers, e.g. Fitesa of Simpsonville,S.C., USA or TWE Group GmbH, of Emsdetten, Germany. The nonwoven layermay be stabilized by a latex binder for example a styrene-butadienelatex binder (SB latex). Processes for obtaining such latexes are known,for example from EP149,880 (Kwok), US2002/028858 and US2003/0105190(Diehl). The binder may typically be present in an acquisition layer inexcess of about 12%, about 14% or about 16% by weight of the layer. A SBlatex is for example commercially available under the trade name GENFLO™3160 (OMNOVA Solutions Inc.; Akron, Ohio). Latex bonded acquisitionlayers are for example further disclosed in US2005/033252A1,US2005/033253A1 or US2005/043694A1 (Schneider). The basis weight ofacquisition layers may typically range from 10 gsm to 200 gsm, inparticular 20 gsm to 140 gsm, or 40 gsm to 120 gsm, for example 80 gsm.

The liquid management layer 52 as illustrated on FIG. 9 comprises acentral portion 60″ and side portions 61″, 62″. The side portions 61″,62″ may in turn also comprise winglets 610″-617″, 620″-627″, although itis not excluded that the side portions do not comprise winglets but areeach crescent-shaped or otherwise shaped as indicated previously for theliquid management layer 54. For a liquid management layer formed from anonwoven material, as illustrated on FIG. 9, it may be more practical toform the liquid management layer folding guides 261″, 261″ bycompressing or slitting the nonwoven material according to desiredpattern. This is exemplarily represented on FIG. 9 by the folding guides261″, 262″ which follow the contour of the folding guides of theabsorbent core 28 and are exemplarity formed by intermittently slittingthe layer 52. The winglets may be formed by cutting triangular cut-outsor slitting the side portions in the transversal direction to form gapsbetween the winglets 610″-617″, 620″-627″. These cuttings or slittingoperations may be made online using conventional tools such as slittingtools, embossing tools or cutting tools.

A further acquisition layer (not represented) may be used in addition toa first acquisition layer described above. For example a tissue layermay be placed between the acquisition layer 52 and the distributionlayer 54. The tissue may have enhanced capillarity distributionproperties compared to the acquisition layer described above. The tissueand the first acquisition layer may be of the same size or may be ofdifferent size, for example the tissue layer may extend further in theback of the absorbent article than the first acquisition layer. Anexample of hydrophilic tissue is a 13-15 gsm high wet strength made ofcellulose fibers from supplier Havix.

Topsheet 24

The topsheet 24 may be any topsheet known in the art for absorbentarticles. The topsheet is preferably compliant, soft-feeling, andnon-irritating to the wearer's skin. Further, at least a portion of thetopsheet is liquid permeable, permitting liquids to readily penetratethrough its thickness. A suitable topsheet may be manufactured from awide range of materials, such as porous foams, reticulated foams,apertured plastic films, or woven or nonwoven materials of naturalfibers (e.g., wood or cotton fibers), synthetic fibers or filaments(e.g., polyester or polypropylene or bicomponent PE/PP fibers ormixtures thereof), or a combination of natural and synthetic fibers. Ifthe topsheet 24 includes fibers, the fibers may be spunbond, carded,wet-laid, meltblown, hydroentangled, or otherwise processed as is knownin the art, in particular spunbond PP nonwoven. A suitable topsheetcomprising a web of staple-length polypropylene fibers is manufacturedby Veratec, Inc., a Division of International Paper Company, of Walpole,Mass. under the designation P-8. Typical diaper topsheets have a basisweight of from about 10 to about 28 gsm, in particular between fromabout 12 to about 18 gsm but other basis weights are possible.

Suitable formed film topsheets are also described in U.S. Pat. Nos.3,929,135, 4,324,246, 4,342,314, 4,463,045, and 5,006,394. Othersuitable topsheets may be made in accordance with U.S. Pat. Nos.4,609,518 and 4,629,643. Such formed films are available from TheProcter & Gamble Company of Cincinnati, Ohio as “DRI-WEAVE” and fromTredegar Corporation, based in Richmond, Va., as “CLIFF-T”.

The topsheet may also be treated with a wetting agent to make it morehydrophilic. The wetting agent may be a surfactant as is known in theart. Other possible treatments are for example special coating bynanoparticles, as for example described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,645,569,6,863,933, US2003/148684 and US2005/008839, (Cramer et al.) and U.S.Pat. No. 7,112,621 (Rohrbaugh et al). Any portion of the topsheet mayalso coated with a lotion as is known in the art. Examples of suitablelotions include those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,607,760, 5,609,587,5,643,588, 5,968,025 and 6,716,441. The topsheet 24 may also include orbe treated with antibacterial agents, some examples of which aredisclosed in WO 95/24173. Further, the topsheet, the backsheet or anyportion of the topsheet or backsheet may be embossed and/or mattefinished to provide a more cloth like appearance.

The topsheet 24 may comprise one or more apertures to ease penetrationof exudates therethrough, such as urine and/or feces (solid, semi-solid,or liquid). The size of at least the primary aperture is important inachieving the desired waste encapsulation performance. If the primaryaperture is too small, the waste may not pass through the aperture,either due to poor alignment of the waste source and the aperturelocation or due to fecal masses having a diameter greater than theaperture. If the aperture is too large, the area of skin that may becontaminated by “rewet” from the article is increased. Typically, thetotal area of the apertures at the surface of a diaper may have an areaof between about 10 cm² and about 50 cm², in particular between about 15cm² and 35 cm². Examples of apertured topsheet are disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 6,632,504. WO 2011/163582 also discloses suitable coloredtopsheet having a basis weight of from 12 to 18 gsm and comprising aplurality of bonded points. Each of the bonded points has a surface areaof from 2 mm² to 5 mm² and the cumulated surface area of the pluralityof bonded points is from 10 to 25% of the total surface area of thetopsheet.

Although not shown in the drawings, it is possible to bond the topsheetdirectly or indirectly to the folding guides of the absorbent core. If aliquid management layer is present between the topsheet and thebacksheet, the topsheet may also be bonded to or through the foldingguide of the liquid management layer. The topsheet may be bonded by anyknown bonding means, typically adhesive bonding, pressure bonding orheat bonding, or a combination of these. Similarly the topsheet may alsobe directly or indirectly bonded to at least some of the areas of thecore wrap corresponding to the gaps between the winglets of theabsorbent core.

Backsheet 25

The backsheet 25 may also be made according to any backsheet known inthe art for absorbent articles. The backsheet 25 is typicallyimpermeable to liquids (e.g. urine) so that it keeps the garment-facingside of the article dry. The backsheet may for example be or comprise athin plastic film such as a thermoplastic film having a thickness ofless than about 0.10 mm. Exemplary backsheet films include thosemanufactured by Tredegar Corporation, based in Richmond, Va., and soldunder the trade name CPC2 film. Other suitable backsheet materials mayinclude breathable materials which permit vapors to escape from thearticle while still preventing exudates from passing through thebacksheet. A covering low basis weight nonwoven may be attached to theexternal surface of the film to provide for a softer touch.

Other Components of the Article

The absorbent articles of the invention can comprise any typicalcomponents known for the intended purpose of the article. FIG. 1 andFIG. 3 show other typical taped diaper components not further discussedherein such as a fastening system comprising fastening tabs 42 attachedtowards the back edge 12 of the article and cooperating with a landingzone 44 placed towards the front edge 10 of the article. These fasteningfeatures are typically absent from pant-type articles which have apre-formed side seam, nevertheless the invention may of course also beused in such pant-types articles. The absorbent article may alsocomprise other typical components, which are not represented in theFigures, such as a back elastic waist feature, a front elastic waistfeature, transverse barrier element across the topsheet, a wetnessindicator between the core and the backsheet that changes appearancewhen contacted with urine, a lotion application on the topsheet, etc.These components are well-known in the art and will not be furtherdiscussed herein. Reference is made to WO2014/093310 where severalexamples of these components are disclosed in more details.

The absorbent articles may typically further comprise components thatimprove the fit of the article around the legs of the wearer, inparticular a pair of barrier leg cuffs 34 and gasketing cuffs 32. Thebarrier leg cuffs 34 may each be formed by a piece of material,typically a nonwoven, that can be partially raised away and thus standup from the plane defined by the topsheet, as shown for example in FIGS.4a-c . The barrier leg cuffs thus comprise a first portion 64 flush withthe topsheet and limited inwardly by a proximal edge 65. This firstportion may be attached to the topsheet and/or backsheet with anintermittent or continuous fusion bond and/or a glue bond. The barrierleg cuffs 34 further comprise a free-standing portion limited by adistal edge 66, which in use fits at the junction of the thighs with thetorso of the wearer, at least in the crotch region 37 of the article.The barrier leg cuffs can provide improved containment of liquids andother body exudates approximately at the junction of the torso and legsof the wearer. Typically, the barrier leg cuffs are formed from aseparate material joined to the rest of the article, in particular tothe topsheet, but it is not excluded that the barrier leg cuffs can beintegral with (i.e. formed from) the topsheet or the backsheet, or anyother layer, for example the bottom layer of the core wrap. Typicallythe material of the barrier leg cuffs may extend through the wholelength of the article but is further bonded to the topsheet towards thefront edge and back edge of the article so that in these sections thebarrier leg cuff material remains flush with the topsheet (tack bondsnot shown in FIG. 1 for readability). Each barrier leg cuff 34 typicallycomprises one, two or more elastic strings 35 close to this freestanding terminal edge 66.

The contractive elastic forces provided at the distal end 66 of thebarrier leg cuffs can help folding the absorbent core and thus theabsorbent article into a basin shape. Thus the elastic strings 35 willnot only cause the barrier leg cuffs to stand up, but they willadvantageously also pull the side portions 61, 62 of the absorbent coreupwards, with these side portions hinging on the folding guides 261,262.When present, the corresponding side portions of a liquid managementlayer 52, 54 will also stand up to form absorbent side walls.

In addition to the barrier leg cuffs 34, the article may typicallycomprise gasketing cuffs 32, which may be present as part of the chassisof the absorbent article. The gasketing cuffs may be at least partiallyenclosed between the topsheet and the backsheet, or the barrier legcuffs and the backsheet. The gasketing cuffs may be placed transversallyoutward relative to the proximal edge 65 of the barrier leg cuffs 34.The gasketing cuffs 32 can provide a better seal around the thighs ofthe wearer. Usually each gasketing cuff 32 will comprise one or moreelastic string or elastic element(s) 33 embedded within the chassis ofthe diaper, for example between the topsheet and backsheet in the areaof the leg openings. These elastic elements 33 may, independently or incombination with the elastics 35 of the barrier leg cuffs, help shapingthe absorbent article into a basin shape when put in place on and beingworn by the user.

Various cuff constructions have been disclosed for in the art and may beused in the present invention. U.S. Pat. No. 3,860,003 describes adisposable diaper which provides a contractible leg opening having aside flap and one or more elastic members to provide gasketing cuffs.U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,808,178 and 4,909,803 (Aziz) describe disposablediapers having “stand-up” elasticized flaps (barrier leg cuffs) whichimprove the containment of the leg regions. U.S. Pat. No. 4,695,278(Lawson) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,795,454 (Dragoo) describe disposablediapers having dual cuffs, including gasketing cuffs and barrier legcuffs. More recently, WO2005/105010 (Ashton) discloses a dual cuffsystem made of a continuous cuff material. All or a portion of thebarrier leg and/or gasketing cuffs may be treated with a lotion.

Although not represented, the article of the invention may furthercomprise other longitudinally-extending elasticized elements as known inthe prior art, in particular elements which may be at least partiallyplaced between the side portions 61, 62 of the absorbent layer and thebacksheet, and whose function is to further help folding the articlealong the fold lines when it is put in place and worn by the user. Forexample WO2006/068549 (Hansson) discloses having at least twostretchable crotch elastic members in the crotch portion and attached tothe absorbent core and/or one of the topsheet or backsheet, wherein atleast a substantial portion of the crotch elastic members are positionedlaterally outside the respective folding guides. WO95/16418 (Wildlund)discloses having two elastic threads fastened in a stretched state tothe topsheet and extending from the front of the article to the back ofthe article. The threads are mutually convergent.

The combined elastic forces provided by the different elasticizedcomponents of the article may thus bring or facilitate bringing thearticle into a basin shape when the article is placed on a wearer.

More generally, adjacent layers within the article will be joinedtogether using conventional bonding method such as adhesive coating viaslot coating, spiral gluing, or spraying on the whole or part of thesurface of the layer, or thermo-bonding, or pressure bonding orcombinations thereof. Most of the bonding between components is forclarity and readability not represented in the Figure. Bonding betweenthe layers of the article should be considered to be present unlessspecifically excluded. Adhesives may be typically used to improve theadhesion of the different layers. For example, the backsheet and thecore wrap may be glued using a core-to-backsheet gluing pattern asdisclosed in WO2012/170341A1 (Hippe), or a full coverage pattern usingseveral spiral glue applicators. If for example the backsheet isattached by gluing or otherwise to the areas of the core wrapcorresponding to the folding guides (not shown), the folding guides maybecome more visible to the user from the garment-facing side of thearticle. Any typical hotmelt adhesives may be used. It is also possibleto use a printed adhesive layer, for example between the topsheet andabsorbent core or liquid management layer, which may be optionallyvisible through the topsheet, as exemplary disclosed in WO2014/078247.

Further Example

FIG. 11 illustrates an absorbent core similar to the one shown in FIG. 5but with a different pattern of gaps separating the winglets. The gapsbetween the winglets still comprise triangular gaps between neighboringwinglets, but in a different arrangement. By changing thesearrangements, the shape of the basin may be modified so as to be moresuitable for the particular need of the wearer. For example, smallerbabies may be spending more time laying on the back or sitting, whilemore developed babies or toddlers may spend more time standing andwalking. This may require a different radius of curvature for the corein the basin configuration. The absorbent core of FIG. 11 and an articlein which this core is integrated may follow the same consideration asindicated previously for the core of FIG. 5, in particular an auxiliaryglue application pattern on the inner side of the top layer of theabsorbent core as previously indicated in relation to FIG. 7. FIG. 12and FIG. 13 illustrate adapted liquid management layers having wingletsgenerally matching the winglets of the core of FIG. 11, with FIG. 14showing all three layers superposed. However it is clear that theseembodiments are not limiting the present invention, in particular it isnot excluded that simpler liquid management layers construction havingno winglets may be used with the absorbent core of the invention.

Bi-Folded or Tri-Folded Articles and Package 320

Relatively long absorbent articles such as children or adult diapers aretypically packaged in a folded configuration for distribution and sale.It is in particular common to bi-fold children diapers along theirtransversal axis. Typically the longitudinally-extending sides of thearticles including the barrier leg cuffs and gasketing cuffs arelongitudinally pre-folded along the edge of the absorbent core. Aplurality of bi-folded absorbent articles is formed into a stack. Thestack may then be compressed and packaged in a packaging material suchas a plastic bag. Each stack of articles in a package of the inventionmay comprise any amount of folded articles, for example from 5 to 100,in particular from 10 to 50. The primary package (often a plastic bag)may be then further optionally packaged in a secondary package such as acardboard box. A secondary package may also comprise any amount ofprimary bags, for example from 2 to 10.

FIG. 15a schematically shows the diaper 20 laid out flat and extendsfrom its back end 12 to it front end 10 with the longitudinal axis 80 ofthe diaper extending there-between, the topsheet 24 facing upwardly, andthe longitudinal side edges 13, 14 with the cuffs longitudinallypre-folded inwardly over the topsheet 24. A taped diaper is illustratedbut similar considerations apply to a pre-sealed pant type diaper. Toform a bi-folded article, the diaper 20 may typically be folded oncealong the transversal axis 90. This fold line notionally divides thediaper in a front section 50 and a back section 51. FIG. 15bschematically shows the bi-folded diaper with the front section 50 onthe bottom side and back section 51 on the top side. The bi-foldeddiapers are then stacked to form a stack with the desired numbers ofdiapers, compressed, and packaged into a bag 322, as is known in theart. Such a diaper package 320 is illustrated in FIG. 16. The diapers 20may be packaged in a packaging material 322 such as a flexible plasticbag or pouch or a box or the like. The diaper package 320 illustrated inFIG. 16 has a width W, a height H extending perpendicularly to the widthW, and a depth D extending substantially perpendicularly to both width Wand the height H. The height H of the diaper package 320 issubstantially parallel to the longitudinal axis 80 of the diapers. Ofcourse, as is known in the art, some bags may comprise more than onestack of compressed diapers. The articles in the bag represented havetheir transversal fold line pointing down but of course the bag may beturned upside down so that the transversal fold lines are presentedupwards as is common.

It has been suggested that absorbent articles having an airfelt-freecores may be packaged at high compression, in particular at acompression rate greater than about 58% (see US2011/0073513A1, Weismanet al.) without losing their properties. Such a high compression rateallows packing more articles in a given volume. The present inventorshave however found that the bi-fold line along the transversal axis mayat a high compression rate remain present like an embossment in thearticle after it is unpacked and opened. This additional transversalfold line going through the middle of the absorbent core potentiallyinterferes with the desired folding of the article along the foldingguides in the basin configuration when the article is put on the wearer.The longitudinal pre-fold lines along the cuffs do not however create anissue as they typically do not cross the absorbent core.

In a first aspect, it is therefore suggested that the articles may stillbe bi-folded as is known for the majority of commercial diaper packages,but at a lower compression rate than previously suggested. The articlesof the inventions may thus be packaged compressed at a rate of maximum50%, in particular of from 10% to 50%, in particular from 20% to 40%.The “In-Bag Compression Rate” as used herein is one minus the height ofa stack of 10 folded articles in millimeters, measured while undercompression within a bag (“In-Bag Stack Height”), divided by the heightof a stack of 10 folded articles of the same type before compression,multiplied by 100; i.e. (1-In-Bag Stack Height/stack height beforecompression)*100, reported as a percentage. Of course, the stack in thebag does not need to have exactly 10 articles, rather the value measuredfor the width W of the package is divided by the number of articles inthe stack and then multiplied by 10. The articles before compression maybe typically sampled from the production line between the folding unitand the stack packing unit. The method used to measure the In-Bag StackHeight is described in further details in the Test Procedure below withreference to the Universal Diaper Packaging Tester illustrated in FIG.19.

In a second aspect, the articles may also be packaged tri-folded along afirst fold line 304 and a second fold line 306, both lines beingparallel to the transversal direction 80 as illustrated in FIG. 17a-c .Typically, the first fold line and the second fold line may divide thearticle in three sections of equal length, that correspond to the frontregion 36, the crotch region 37 and the back region 38 of the article.It is however also possible that these transversally oriented fold linesare placed at different position of the article, for example at aquarter of the length of the article from the front end 10 and back end12 of the article respectively. By tri-folding the article, it ispossible to avoid a fold line along the transversal axis 80′ whichtypically is present in the middle of the absorbent core. One or both ofthe first and second fold lines 304, 306 may be in particular placedoutside the side portions 61, 62, towards the front edge and back edgeof the core respectively, or least away from the gaps between thewinglets, so that they do not interfere with the formation of thebasin-shaped configuration of the article as it is placed on the wearer.

In FIG. 17a , an exemplary diaper 20 is schematically shown laid outflat as in FIG. 15a with the cuffs longitudinally pre-folded as isusual. To form a tri-folded diaper, the diaper may be transversallyfolded along a first fold line 304 and then a second fold line 306spaced away from the first fold line 304. This tri-folding forms acentral section 37 extending from the first fold line 304 to the secondfold line 306, a first end section 38 extending from the first fold line304 to the back end 12 of the diaper 20, and a second end section 36extending from the second fold line 306 to the front end 10 of thediaper. To tri-fold the diaper, the first end of the diaper may befolded along the first fold line 304 so that the first section 38 of thediaper overlays the central section 37 and is substantially coextensivewith the central section. This is best illustrated in FIG. 15b . Next,as illustrated in FIG. 15c , the second end section 36 of the diaper 10is folded along the second fold line 306 so that the second end section36 overlays the first section 38 of the diaper 29 and is substantiallycoextensive with both the first section 36 and the central section 37.This and other ways to make a tri-folded article are for example furtherdisclosed in WO2008/155702 (Hundorf), see in particular FIG. 18 and thecorresponding description.

The first section, central section, and the second section may have thesame length, corresponding to a third of the total length of thearticle, each section being superposed to one another, as illustrated inprogression in FIGS. 15b and 15c , but other configurations are possibleas indicated previously. In particular, it is known for adultincontinence pants to first fold the pant in its middle along it istransversal centerline, then transversally fold again this bi-foldedarticle along the middle of the bi-folded article. This is sometimescalled a quadri-fold as the folded article is about four times thickerthan the unfolded article, although the article has only been foldedtwice transversally. In the present application, such a quadri-foldedarticle is thus further considered to be a particular example of atri-fold.

A plurality of the tri-folded diapers can then be stacked together,compressed and bagged. This stack of tri-folded diapers may becompressed without a particular restriction to form a diaper package 320as illustrated in FIG. 18. The compression rate of the tri-foldedarticle in the package may be higher or lower than 50%, for exampleranging from 10% to 80%. For a quadri-fold as indicated previously, inmay advantageous to have a compression rate of from 10% to 50%, inparticular from 20% to 40%. Of course each package may comprise morethan one stack of tri-folded articles as is known in the art.

In a third aspect, the absorbent articles may be transversally bi-foldedas indicated above and packaged so that the packaged articles have aIn-Bag Stack Height from 72 mm to about 120 mm. The stack of article isadvantageously compressed in the package. As indicated previously, thepackaged articles may benefit from a lower compression rate, butdepending on the material used it may be acceptable to use anycompression rate as long as the IBSH value ranges from 72 mm to about120 mm. In particular, the articles may have in-bag stack height ofbetween 84 mm and 120 mm.

Test Procedures

The values indicated herein are measured according to the methodsindicated herein below, unless specified otherwise. All measurements areperformed at 21° C.±2° C. and 50%±20% RH, unless specified otherwise.All samples should be kept at least 24 hours in these conditions toequilibrate before conducting the tests, unless indicated otherwise. Allmeasurements should be reproduced on at least 4 samples and the averagevalue obtained indicated, unless otherwise indicated.

In-Bag Stack Height Method

The package dimensions (Length/Width/Depth) can be measured using a“Universal Diaper Packaging Tester” (UDPT) 900 which is illustrated inFIG. 19. The UDPT 900 comprises a base 902 with a storage box 904 on theback of the base 902. A vertical anchored plate 906 is mounted to thebase 902 proximate one end of the base 902 and an horizontal slidingplate 908 is mounted to the base 902 in a horizontal track 910. A firstdigital meter 912 is disposed along the horizontal track 910 adjacentthe horizontal sliding plate 908. A vertical sliding plate 914 isslidably mounted above the base 902 and over the horizontal track 910 toa vertical track 916 which is mounted to the base 902 between thehorizontal track 910 and the storage box 904. A pulley 918 mounted tothe vertical track 916 connects the vertical sliding plate 914 to asuspended weight 920 which counter-balances the weight of the verticalsliding plate 914 to assure that no downward force is added from thevertical sliding plate 914 assembly to the diaper package at all times.A stopper 922 is mounted to the vertical sliding plate 914 for lockingthe vertical sliding plate 914 to the vertical track 916. A seconddigital meter 924 is mounted to the vertical track 916 proximate thevertical sliding plate 914.

A UDPT is for example available from Matsushita Industry Co. LTD,7-21-101, Midorigaoka-cho, Ashiya-city, Hyogo Japan 659-0014; Tel. (81)797 34 3367; Drawing: M-ROEL-01000-B; Region-ID:UDPT-EU-I/UDPT-NA-I/UDPT-LA-I. The test procedure is as follows:

The UDPT 900 is calibrated by pulling down the vertical sliding plate914 until its bottom touches the base 902, setting the second digitalmeter 924 of the vertical sliding plate 914 to zero mark, and raisingthe vertical sliding plate 914 away from the base 902.

The package 320 width W (see FIG. 16 or FIG. 18) is the maximum distancebetween the two highest bulging points along the same compression stackaxis of the diaper package 320. The package height H is the maximumdistance between the bottom panel and the highest point of the top panelof the diaper package. The package depth D (aka front-to-back) is themaximum distance between the front and back panels of a package. Tomeasure the package dimensions:

1. Put the desired panel of the package standing on the center of base902 as shown in FIG. 19. Make sure the horizontal sliding plate 908 ispulled to the right so it does not touch the package 320 being tested.Note: If the bag length is greater than 430 mm (e.g., double stackbags), place the bag in such a way that the artwork logo isfacing/running in parallel to the vertical anchored plate to be able tomeasure the package width.

2. Place an 850 g weight onto the vertical sliding plate 914.

3. Allow the vertical sliding plate 914 to slide down until its bottomlightly touches desired highest point of the package.

4. Measure the desired package dimensions in mm by reading the valuethat appears on the second digital meter 924 of the vertical scale.

5. Remove the weight.

6. Raise the vertical sliding plate 914 away from the package and removethe package.

7. In case the package has more than one stack, a width measurement ismade for each stack. The lowest Width value is recorded.

8. Report the determined value for each measurement to the nearest 1 mm.

The In-Bag Stack Height is the length of the stack (i.e. the width W)reported for 10 articles, which is calculated by dividing the measuredwidth W by the number of articles in the stack and multiplying by 10.

The stack height of the articles before compression can be measuredusing the same equipment, in which 10 articles are sampled on themanufacturing line after they were folded but before compression andbagging.

Centrifuge Retention Capacity (CRC)

The CRC measures the liquid absorbed by the superabsorbent polymerparticles for free swelling in excess liquid. The CRC is measuredaccording to EDANA method WSP 241.2-05.

Urine Permeability Measurement (UPM) Test Method

This method is used to determine the permeability of a swollen hydrogellayer. The results are generally expressed in UPM units equal to 1×10⁻⁷cm³·s/g. The Urine Permeability Measurement Test is disclosed in PCTapplication WO2012/174026A1, incorporated herein by reference.

Thickness Measurement Method

This method is used to measure the thickness of a component of anarticle or of the article (“sample”) itself in a standardized manner.

Equipment: Mitutoyo manual caliper gauge with a resolution of 0.01 mm,or equivalent instrument.

Contact Foot: Flat circular foot with a diameter of 17.0 mm (±0.2 mm). Acircular weight may be applied to the foot (e.g., a weight with a slotto facilitate application around the instrument shaft) to achieve thetarget weight. The total weight of foot and added weight (includingshaft) is selected to provide 4.14 kPa of pressure to the sample.

The caliper gauge is mounted with the lower surface of the contact footin an horizontal plane so that the lower surface of the contact footcontacts the center of the flat horizontal upper surface of a base plateapproximately 20 cm×25 cm. The gauge is set to read zero with thecontact foot resting on the base plate.

Ruler: Calibrated metal ruler graduated in mm.

Stopwatch: Accuracy 1 second.

Sample preparation: The sample is conditioned at least 24 hours asindicated above.

Measurement procedure: The sample is laid flat with the bottom side,i.e. the side intended to be placed away from the wearer facing down.The point of measurement (if not otherwise indicated the middle of thesample) is carefully drawn on the top side of the sample, taking carenot to compress or deform the sample.

The contact foot of the caliper gauge is raised and the sample is placedflat on the base plate of the caliper gauge with the top side of thesample up so that when lowered, the center of the foot is on the markedmeasuring point.

The foot is gently lowered onto the sample and released (ensurecalibration to “0” prior to the start of the measurement). The calipervalue is read to the nearest 0.01 mm, 10 seconds after the foot isreleased.

The procedure is repeated for each sample. Ten samples are measured inthis manner for a given material and the average caliper is calculatedand reported with an accuracy of one tenth mm.

Misc.

The dimensions and values disclosed herein are not to be understood asbeing strictly limited to the exact numerical values recited. Instead,unless otherwise specified, each such dimension is intended to mean boththe recited value and a functionally equivalent range surrounding thatvalue. For example, a dimension disclosed as “40 mm” is intended to mean“about 40 mm.”

Every document cited herein, including any cross referenced or relatedpatent or application and any patent application or patent to which thisapplication claims priority or benefit thereof, is hereby incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety unless expressly excluded orotherwise limited. The citation of any document is not an admission thatit is prior art with respect to any invention disclosed or claimedherein or that it alone, or in any combination with any other referenceor references, teaches, suggests or discloses any such invention.Further, to the extent that any meaning or definition of a term in thisdocument conflicts with any meaning or definition of the same term in adocument incorporated by reference, the meaning or definition assignedto that term in this document shall govern.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have beenillustrated and described, it would be obvious to those skilled in theart that various other changes and modifications can be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is thereforeintended to cover in the appended claims all such changes andmodifications that are within the scope of this invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A package comprising at least one stack of compressed absorbent articles, wherein each article extends in longitudinal direction and a transversal direction, and comprises: a topsheet; a backsheet; an absorbent core between the topsheet and the backsheet, wherein the absorbent core comprises an absorbent layer in a core wrap, the absorbent layer comprising an absorbent material and having a longitudinally extending central portion, a first side portion disposed transversally outward of the central portion and a second side portion disposed transversally outward of the central portion on another side of the central portion; wherein the absorbent core further comprises a first folding guide between the central portion and the first side portion, and a second folding guide between the central portion and the second side portion; wherein each side portion comprises a plurality of winglets, each winglet having a proximal side relative to a folding guide and extending outward from this proximal side, and wherein neighboring winglets are separated by a gap between their neighboring sides; wherein each of the first folding guide and the second folding guide are substantially free of absorbent material; wherein each of the first folding guide and the second folding guide substantially continuously extend from a first location of a longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core to a second location of the longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core; and wherein in the package, the articles are bi-folded along a transversal fold line and are compressed at an In-Bag Compression Rate of from 5% to 50%.
 2. The package of claim 1, wherein the absorbent core is substantially free of cellulose fibers.
 3. The package of claim 1, wherein the articles in the package have an In-Bag Stack Height of from 84 mm to 120 mm.
 4. The package of claim 1, wherein the core wrap comprises a top layer and a bottom layer, and the top layer of the core wrap is bonded to the bottom layer of the core wrap through at least the folding guides and at least some of the gaps between the winglets.
 5. The package of claim 4, comprising an auxiliary glue between (i) at least one of the top layer or bottom layer of the core wrap and (ii) the absorbent layer.
 6. A package comprising at least one stack of absorbent articles, wherein each article extends in longitudinal direction and a transversal direction, and comprises: a topsheet; a backsheet; an absorbent core between the topsheet and the backsheet, wherein the absorbent core comprises an absorbent layer in a core wrap, the absorbent layer comprising an absorbent material and having a longitudinally extending central portion, a first side portion disposed transversally outward of the central portion and a second side portion disposed transversally outward of the central portion on another side of the central portion; wherein the absorbent core further comprises a first folding guide between the central portion and the first side portion, and a second folding guide between the central portion and the second side portion; wherein each side portion comprises a plurality of winglets, each winglet having a proximal side relative to a folding guide and extending outward from this proximal side, and wherein neighboring winglets are separated by a gap between their neighboring sides; wherein each of the first folding guide and the second folding guide are substantially free of absorbent material; wherein each of the first folding guide and the second folding guide substantially continuously extend from a first location of a longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core to a second location of the longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core; and wherein the articles are bi-folded along a transversal fold line and have an In-Bag-Stack Height of from 72 mm to 120 mm.
 7. The package of claim 6, wherein the articles are compressed at an In-Bag Compression Rate of from 5% to 50%.
 8. The package of claim 6, wherein the absorbent core is substantially free of cellulose fibers.
 9. The package of claim 6, wherein the articles in the package have an In-Bag Stack Height of from 84 mm to 120 mm.
 10. The package of claim 6 wherein the core wrap comprises a top layer and a bottom layer, and the top layer of the core wrap is bonded to the bottom layer of the core wrap at least through the folding guides and at least some of the gaps between the winglets.
 11. The package of claim 10, comprising an auxiliary glue between (i) at least one of the top layer or bottom layer of the core wrap and (ii) the absorbent layer.
 12. The package of claim 1, wherein each of the first folding guide and the second folding guide substantially continuously extend from a first location of a longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core to a second location of the longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core.
 13. The package of claim 6, wherein each of the first folding guide and the second folding guide substantially continuously extend from a first location of a longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core to a second location of the longitudinally-extending side edge of the absorbent core.
 14. A package comprising at least one stack of compressed absorbent articles, wherein each article extends in longitudinal direction and a transversal direction, and comprises: a topsheet; a backsheet; an absorbent core between the topsheet and the backsheet, wherein the absorbent core comprises an absorbent layer in a core wrap, the absorbent layer comprising an absorbent material and having a longitudinally extending central portion, a first side portion disposed transversally outward of the central portion and a second side portion disposed transversally outward of the central portion on another side of the central portion; wherein the absorbent core further comprises a first folding guide between the central portion and the first side portion, and a second folding guide between the central portion and the second side portion; wherein each side portion comprises a plurality of winglets, each winglet having a proximal side relative to a folding guide and extending outward from this proximal side to be substantially transversely co-extensive with longitudinally-extending side edges of the absorbent core where the plurality of winglets do not exist, and wherein at least some neighboring winglets are separated by a gap between their neighboring sides; wherein in the package, the articles are bi-folded along a transversal fold line and are compressed at an In-Bag Compression Rate of from 5% to 50%. 